Mullens Hits
Home Run in USMTS Ed Gressel Memorial Opener
Tanner Mullens of Wichita got the better of polesitter
Will Krup on the opening lap as the Summit USMTS
National Championship presented by RacinDirt kicked off
the opening night main event of the inaugural Ed Gressel
Memorial at the 81 Speedway.
A caution on the
fourth lap slowed the pace early on, but from there it
was green flag racing with Mullens distancing himself
from Krup, who gave way to Jeremy Nelson for the second
spot on lap 10.
A flat tire for Nelson with four
laps to go gave Mullens plenty of padding to cruise to
his first USMTS win at his home track, but a flat tire
on the VanderBuilt Race Car of Cayden Carter—last year’s
Grant Junghans USMTS Rookie of the Year—with just two
laps to go set a new tone for the final two-lap sprint
to the end.
Mullens, 30, who was the top USMTS
rookie in 2020, had no problems with the restart as he
sailed to a margin of victory of more than two seconds
over Jake Timm, who snagged the runner-up spot from Krup
at the finish line after Krup also blew a tire just
before he crossed beneath the checkered flags.
The win was worth $3,000 to Mullens—a three-time
Hutchinson Nationals winner and 2017 NCRA champion. It
was his first at 81 Speedway but the eighth of his
career, tying him with Brandon Davis, Ryan Ruter, Tommy
Weder Jr. and another former driver for Gressel Racing,
Ricky Thornton Jr., on the all-time USMTS wins list. It
was the 26th USMTS feature hosted by the 81 Speedway
with Mullens becoming the 15th different winner.
After turning down $500 earlier after finishing second
in the Kansasland Dash 4 Cash, it appeared Mullens made
the right decision.
“The luck we’ve been having I
didn’t want to put ourselves any further behind,”
Mullens said in victory lane. “Obviously got to keep
your right rear under you and when I got to lapped
traffic I just kind of left a gap there in case somebody
got beside me, but I just didn't want to push it and get
tangled up in there.
After going two-for-two last
weekend in the Sooner State with a win at the Red Dirt
Raceway during the American Racer USRA Modified Series
event, and then a dominating triumph in the USRA
Modified season opener at the Longdale Speedway on
Saturday, Mullens is in a Gressel-like groove for the
next two nights.
“He kind of gave me my first
taste to running USMTS and I’ll forever be grateful for
that,” Mullens said of Ed Gressel who passed away last
May and was a fixture at the 81 Speedway. “He was a
really good guy and we’re all going to miss him.”
Behind Mullens, Timm and Krup it was Tom Berry Jr.
and Zack VanderBeek completing the first five to the
finish line. Sixth through tenth went to Jake O'Neil,
six-time 81 Speedway winner Rodney Sanders, Terry
Phillips, Jim Chisholm and Jason Hughes.
Both
Krup and Mullens turned down $500 to start sixth in the
main event after finishing first and second in the
Kansasland Dash 4 Cash, so Friday’s value climbs to
$1,250 ($750 plus $500 carried over). The same rules and
procedures apply on Saturday where the Kansasland Dash 4
Cash is worth $1,000, but if Friday’s money is unclaimed
then Saturday’s prize increases to a $2,250 dangling
carrot.
The inaugural Ed Gressel Memorial
continues Friday with a top prize of $5,000 up for grabs
with JLR Property Management 316 A-Mods and AutoTech
Service Super Stocks making up the undercard. Saturday’s
finale will see no less than $10,000 going to the winner
with the Heyglassman.com Stock Cars joining the show
with the Summit USMTS Modifieds.
Joe Wright—a
former crew member for Gressel Racing—put up $800 for
long-distance travelers with $200 each to the farthest
from each direction. The winners were Dan Ebert of Lake
Shore, Minn. (776 miles north), Billy Jack Brutchin of
Gladewater, Texas (487 miles south), Chase Holland,
Success, Miss. (862 miles east) and Kelsie Foley of
Tucson, Ariz. (1,017 miles west). Foley won the overall
MVT Long Tow Award and an extra $100 for gas money.
Mel Hambelton Ford Open House: Mel
Hambelton Ford in Wichita, Kan., invites all race fans,
drivers, crew members and their families to the 3rd
Annual USMTS Open House on Friday, April 21, from 11
a.m. to 1 p.m. Meet your favorite drivers while you
enjoy food, fun, contests and more.
Click here to learn more.
Live Music:
A perfect blend of country and rock from the nation's
heartland since 2012, the Midwest's most prominent
Heartland Rock band, Tequila Ridge will be playing live
music following the races on Friday night.
Cornhole Tournament: 81 Speedway will
host a Cornhole Tournament and silent auction for door
panels on Saturday. Winners will receive cornhole boards
as prizes.
Click here to register. Space is limited. The cost
is $50 per team and the tournament starts at 10 a.m. for
more information call (316)
304-1454 or email
81speedwayevents@gmail.com.
• VP Racing
Fuels-Heartland is adding incentives to driver's
competing in Saturday's main event. If the driver who
starts 2nd wins, hey will get an extra $200 in honor of
the Gressel Racing No. 2G driven by Brandon Givens. If
the driver who starts 19th wins, he will get an extra
$1,900 in honor of the No. 19R driven by Ryan Gustin. If
the driver who starts 25th wins, he will get an extra
$2,500 in honor of the No. 25 driven for Ed Gressel by
Scott Green.
• The Ed Gressel Memorial features a
special one-of-a-kind victory lane banner. The 10x20
sign will be autographed by USMTS drivers, and then
after Saturday's finale one lucky person will take the
banner home. Proceeds will go to the choice of Ed's
widow, Cinde Gressel. Bidding starts Thursday.
•
Adam Gressel will offer a $1,000 cash award for
Saturday's FK Rod Ends Hard Charger Award winner, which
makes the award worth a total of $1,100 for the most
prolific passer in the feature race. Thursday's FK Rod
Ends Hard Charger Award went to Chisholm who started
16th and finished 9th.
• Even more 'Reaper
Madness' ensues as Chris Sutton with the RPM Speedway in
Hays, Kan., has a crisp $100 bill for the 19th-place
finisher in honor of the Gressel Racing No. 19R driven
by Gustin, who garnered two Summit USMTS National
Championships while driving for Gressel Racing.
For complete event information, check out the
FAST FACTS or visit
81speedway.com.
For its Silver Anniversary
season, the Summit USMTS National Championship presented
by RacinDirt currently features 45 nights of racing at
15 of America's premier dirt track racing venues in nine
states. The winners of those events are set to earn more
than $300,000 with nearly $2 million in purses and prize
money earmarked for the 2023 campaign.
Watch
every USMTS event online live and on-demand from
anywhere on any device with
RacinDirt. Download the app at
Roku,
Amazon Fire,
iOS,
Apple TV or on
Google Play.
Visit
usmts.com for
schedules,
points,
photos,
souvenirs,
videos and more. Follow our social media channels on
Facebook,
Instagram,
Twitter and
YouTube.
Click here to get USMTS news delivered to your
inbox.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
OFFICIAL RESULTS United States Modified
Touring Series Summit USMTS National Championship
presented by RacinDirt Inaugural Ed Gressel Memorial
– Night 1 of 3 81 Speedway, Park City, Kan.
Thursday, April 20, 2023
Showing
finishing position, starting position in parentheses,
car number, driver and hometown. Heat race lineups are
determined via group qualifying. The top 12 in heat race
passing points advance to the Summit Racing Equipment
“A” Main with the top 8 in the Kansasland Dash 4 Cash
setting the first 4 rows of the “A” Main.
SIMPSON PERFORMANCE PRODUCTS HEAT RACE #1 (8
laps): 1. (5) 49 Jake Timm, Winona, Minn.
2. (1) 10B Brandon Givens, Wichita, Kan. 3. (4) 4W
Tyler Wolff, Fayetteville, Ark. 4. (2) G3 Brendon
Gemmill, Wichita, Kan. 5. (3) 15WK Kale Westover,
Altus, Okla. 6. (10) 38T Dylan Thornton, Orcutt,
Calif. 7. (11) 15W Wyatt Gaggero, Wichita, Kan. 8.
(9) 96 Logan Johnson, Haysville, Kan. 9. (7) 78 Billy
Jack Brutchin, Gladewater, Texas 10. (8) 1M Cody
Gearhart, Dwight, Kan. 11. (6) 24C Jim Chisholm,
Osage, Iowa
FAST SHAFTS HEAT RACE #2 (8
laps): 1. (2) 75 Terry Phillips,
Springfield, Mo. 2. (4) 20 Rodney Sanders, Happy,
Texas 3. (3) 10C Cayden Carter, Oskaloosa, Iowa 4.
(5) 12 Jason Hughes, Watts, Okla. 5. (7) 712 Trevor
Hughes, Salina, Okla. 6. (1) 65X Carlos Ahumada Jr.,
El Paso, Texas 7. (9) 65 Tyler Davis, Haysville, Kan.
8. (6) 8 Dillon McCowan, Urbana, Mo. 9. (11) 30
Dalton Kirk, Edgerton, Kan. 10. (10) 44T Tanner
Black, Otis, Kan. 11. (8) 25C Cody Thompson, Sioux
City, Iowa
EDELBROCK HEAT RACE #3 (8
laps): 1. (1) 91 Joe Duvall, Claremore,
Okla. 2. (3) 4R Dereck Ramirez, Woodward, Okla. 3.
(5) K9 Will Krup, Mt. Carmel, Ill. 4. (2) 55 Chris
Kratzer, Lyons, Kan. 5. (4) 58X Gary Christian,
Broken Bow, Okla. 6. (6) 87 Darron Fuqua, Mayetta,
Kan. 7. (7) 7D Davis Givens, Hutchinson, Kan. 8.
(8) 11N Gene Nicholas, Lowell, Ark. 9. (9) 96JR Jon
Herring Jr., Woodward, Okla. 10. (10) 22N Kevin
Newell, Wichita, Kan. 11. (11) 99L Steve Lavasseur,
River Falls, Wis.
WIELAND HEAT RACE #4 (8
laps): 1. (2) 21K Kyle Brown, Madrid, Iowa
2. (4) 0 Jake O'Neil, Tucson, Ariz. 3. (5) 33Z Zack
VanderBeek, New Sharon, Iowa 4. (1) 16 Austin
Siebert, Grandview, Mo. 5. (3) 60 Dan Ebert, Lake
Shore, Minn. 6. (6) 21 Jacob Bleess, Chatfield, Minn.
7. (7) 01 Jacob Hobscheidt, Plattsmouth, Neb. 8. (10)
25 Scott Green, Derby, Kan. 9. (9) 44K Kelsie Foley,
Tucson, Ariz. 10. (8) 40 Jessy Willard, Mound City,
Kan.
VP RACING HEAT RACE #5 (8 laps):
1. (3) 4 Jeremy Nelson, Alexandria, Minn. 2. (5) 11X
Tom Berry Jr., Des Moines, Iowa 3. (6) 02 Tanner
Mullens, Wichita, Kan. 4. (4) 127 Paden Phillips,
Chanute, Kan. 5. (2) 45 Chase Holland, Success, Miss.
6. (8) 99T T.J. Tolan, Valley Center, Kan. 7. (1) 22B
Rick Beebe, Shawnee, Kan. 8. (10) 747 Colton Eck,
Goddard, Kan. 9. (9) 7 Al Hejna, Clear Lake, Iowa
10. (7) 96X Taton Hansen, Spicer, Minn.
REAL RACING WHEELS “B” MAIN #1 (15 laps, top 6 advance):
1. (2) 4W Tyler Wolff, Fayetteville, Ark. 2. (1) 12
Jason Hughes, Watts, Okla. 3. (3) 127 Paden Phillips,
Chanute, Kan. 4. (4) 21 Jacob Bleess, Chatfield,
Minn. 5. (7) 58X Gary Christian, Broken Bow, Okla.
6. (9) 45 Chase Holland, Success, Miss. 7. (5) 712
Trevor Hughes, Salina, Okla. 8. (8) 60 Dan Ebert,
Lake Shore, Minn. 9. (11) 65X Carlos Ahumada Jr., El
Paso, Texas 10. (16) 44K Kelsie Foley, Tucson, Ariz.
11. (12) 01 Jacob Hobscheidt, Plattsmouth, Neb. 12.
(10) 65 Tyler Davis, Haysville, Kan. 13. (18) 44T
Tanner Black, Otis, Kan. 14. (20) 96X Taton Hansen,
Spicer, Minn. 15. (14) 22B Rick Beebe, Shawnee, Kan.
16. (19) 1M Cody Gearhart, Dwight, Kan. 17. (15) 30
Dalton Kirk, Edgerton, Kan. 18. (17) 78 Billy Jack
Brutchin, Gladewater, Texas 19. (6) 16 Austin
Siebert, Grandview, Mo. 20. (13) 747 Colton Eck,
Goddard, Kan. 21. (21) 25C Cody Thompson, Sioux City,
Iowa
REAL RACING WHEELS “B” MAIN #2 (15
laps, top 6 advance): 1. (2) 10C Cayden
Carter, Oskaloosa, Iowa 2. (17) 24C Jim Chisholm,
Osage, Iowa 3. (3) 87 Darron Fuqua, Mayetta, Kan.
4. (5) 55 Chris Kratzer, Lyons, Kan. 5. (1) 10B
Brandon Givens, Wichita, Kan. 6. (15) 96JR Jon
Herring Jr., Woodward, Okla. 7. (4) G3 Brendon
Gemmill, Wichita, Kan. 8. (6) 38T Dylan Thornton,
Orcutt, Calif. 9. (7) 15WK Kale Westover, Altus,
Okla. 10. (9) 15W Wyatt Gaggero, Wichita, Kan. 11.
(18) 22N Kevin Newell, Wichita, Kan. 12. (13) 96
Logan Johnson, Haysville, Kan. 13. (10) 8 Dillon
McCowan, Urbana, Mo. 14. (14) 11N Gene Nicholas,
Lowell, Ark. 15. (11) 7D Davis Givens, Hutchinson,
Kan. 16. (19) 40 Jessy Willard, Mound City, Kan.
17. (12) 25 Scott Green, Derby, Kan. 18. (20) 99L
Steve Lavasseur, River Falls, Wis. 19. (8) 99T T.J.
Tolan, Valley Center, Kan. 20. (16) 7 Al Hejna, Clear
Lake, Iowa
KANSASLAND DASH 4 CASH (6
laps): 1. (2) K9 Will Krup, Mt. Carmel, Ill.
2. (1) 02 Tanner Mullens, Wichita, Kan. 3. (3) 4
Jeremy Nelson, Alexandria, Minn. 4. (5) 49 Jake Timm,
Winona, Minn. 5. (7) 33Z Zack VanderBeek, New Sharon,
Iowa 6. (4) 11X Tom Berry Jr., Des Moines, Iowa 7.
(6) 21K Kyle Brown, Madrid, Iowa 8. (8) 75 Terry
Phillips, Springfield, Mo.
SUMMIT RACING
EQUIPMENT “A” MAIN (30 laps): 1. (2) 02
Tanner Mullens, Wichita, Kan. 2. (4) 49 Jake Timm,
Winona, Minn. 3. (1) K9 Will Krup, Mt. Carmel, Ill.
4. (6) 11X Tom Berry Jr., Des Moines, Iowa 5. (5) 33Z
Zack VanderBeek, New Sharon, Iowa 6. (11) 0 Jake
O'Neil, Tucson, Ariz. 7. (10) 20 Rodney Sanders,
Happy, Texas 8. (8) 75 Terry Phillips, Springfield,
Mo. 9. (16) 24C Jim Chisholm, Osage, Iowa 10. (15)
12 Jason Hughes, Watts, Okla. 11. (13) 4W Tyler
Wolff, Fayetteville, Ark. 12. (12) 4R Dereck Ramirez,
Woodward, Okla. 13. (19) 21 Jacob Bleess, Chatfield,
Minn. 14. (18) 87 Darron Fuqua, Mayetta, Kan. 15.
(21) 58X Gary Christian, Broken Bow, Okla. 16. (27)
38T Dylan Thornton, Orcutt, Calif. 17. (25) 60 Dan
Ebert, Lake Shore, Minn. 18. (17) 127 Paden Phillips,
Chanute, Kan. 19. (23) 45 Chase Holland, Success,
Miss. 20. (22) 10B Brandon Givens, Wichita, Kan.
21. (26) 65X Carlos Ahumada Jr., El Paso, Texas 22.
(14) 10C Cayden Carter, Oskaloosa, Iowa 23. (9) 91
Joe Duvall, Claremore, Okla. 24. (3) 4 Jeremy Nelson,
Alexandria, Minn. 25. (29) 65 Tyler Davis, Haysville,
Kan. 26. (20) 55 Chris Kratzer, Lyons, Kan. 27.
(28) 15WK Kale Westover, Altus, Okla. 28. (24) 96JR
Jon Herring Jr., Woodward, Okla. 29. (7) 21K Kyle
Brown, Madrid, Iowa
Lap Leader:
Mullens 1-30. Total Laps Led:
Mullens 30. Margin of Victory: 2.124
seconds. Time of Race: 16 minutes,
15.056 seconds (2 cautions). Provisional
Starters: Ebert, Ahumada. Emergency
Provisionals: T. Davis, Westover. FK
Rod Ends Hard Charger: Chisholm (started 16th,
finished 9th). Entries: 53.
Next Race: Friday, April 21, 81
Speedway, Park City, Kan. Summit USMTS
National Championship Points: Hughes 630, T.
Phillips 619, O'Neil 610, Wolff 608, Ebert 596, Fuqua
583, Chisholm 566, VanderBeek 565, Berry 560, Krup 556.
Grant Junghans USMTS Rookie of the Year Points:
Berry 560, Krup 556, Christian 471, Nelson 471, Holland
437. Miller Welders USMTS Manufacturers
Championship Points: TBD. Callies/JE
Pistons USMTS Engine Builder of the Year Points:
TBD.
Contingency Awards: Aero
Race Wheels – Thompson. American Racer – T. Davis.
Beyea Custom Headers – Berry. BigDeal Car Care –
Mullens, Timm. Bryke Racing – Christian. BSB
Manufacturing – Ahumada. Champ Pans – VanderBeek.
Collins Brothers Towing – Nelson. Deatherage
Opticians – Fuqua. Edelbrock – Duvall. Fast Shafts
– T. Phillips. FK Rod Ends – Chisholm. Hooker
Harness – Ramirez. Hyperco – Sanders. Integra
Racing Shocks & Springs – P. Phillips. Joe Wright –
Brutchin, Ebert, Foley, Holland. Keyser Manufacturing
– Hughes. KSE Racing Products – Chisholm. MD3 –
Mullens. Mel Hambelton Racing – Timm. Mesilla
Valley Transportation – Foley. Midwest Wrap Co. –
Carter. Penske Racing Shocks – Bleess. PEM Racing
Gears & Drivetrain – Willard. QA1 – Carter.
Quarter Master – Chisholm. RacerWebsite.com –
Christian. Salty’s BBQ & Catering – Timm. Simpson
Performance Products – Timm. Summit Racing Equipment
– Black, Gearhart, Herring, P. Phillips, Newell.
Super Clean – Mullens. Swift Springs – Chisholm, P.
Phillips, Mullens. Sybesma Graphics – Krupp. VP
Racing – Mullens. Wehrs Machine & Racing Products –
Eck. Wilwood Disc Brakes – Sanders.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
USMTS OFFICIAL SPONSORS: American
Racer Racing Tires, Beyea
Headers, Callies
Performance Products, Chevrolet
Performance, Fast
Shafts, FK
Rod Ends, KSE
Racing Products, Malvern
Bank, Mesilla
Valley Transportation, Nitroquest
Media, PEM
Racing Gears & Drivetrain, RacinDirt, Summit
Racing Equipment, Super
Clean, VP
Racing, Wieland.
USMTS PARTICIPATING SPONSORS: ARMI
Contractors, Boomtest
Well Service, Boubin
Tire & Automotive, Brodix
Cylinder Heads, Collins
Brothers Towing, D&T
Marriott Enterprise, LLC, DAY
Motorsports, Duvall
Electric, Gunshepherd.com, Hacienda
Mechanical, Kenny's
Tile, Mel
Hambelton Racing, Midwest
Wrap Co., Miller
Welders, PBM
Performance Products, Rancho
Milagro Racing, S&S
Fishing & Rental, Salty's
BBQ & Catering, Shocker
Hitch, Shop
Quik Stores, YouDirt.com.
USMTS CONTINGENCY SPONSORS: AERO
Race Wheels, AFCO
Racing Products, Allstar
Performance, BigDeal
Car Care, Bryke
Racing, BSB
Manufacturing, Champ
Pans, Deatherage
Opticians, Edelbrock, Hooker
Harness, Hyperco, Integra
Racing Shocks and Springs, JE
Pistons, K1
RaceGear by Ryan Bowers Motorsports, Keyser
Manufacturing, MD3, MSD
Performance, Penske
Racing Shocks, Performance
Bodies & Parts, QA1, Quarter
Master, RacerWebsite.com, Real
Racing Wheels, Simpson
Performance Products, Swift
Springs, Sybesma
Graphics, Wehrs
Machine & Racing Products, Wilwood
Racing.
USMTS RACETRACKS:
81 Speedway,
Ark-La-Tex Speedway,
Arrowhead Speedway,
Cedar Lake Speedway,
Deer Creek Speedway,
Fayette County Speedway,
Hamilton County Speedway,
Humboldt Speedway,
I-70 Speedway,
Lakeside Speedway,
Las Vegas Motor Speedway Dirt Track,
Lucas Oil Speedway,
Mason City Motor Speedway,
Ogilvie Raceway,
Rocket Raceway Park.
##
Contact Info:
Jeff Nun
Chief Communications Officer
United States Modified Touring Series, Inc. (USMTS)
1715 W 2nd St, PO Box 905
Webster City, IA 50595
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